Bucher Emhart Glass launches all-new FlexIS 3 control system with powerful safety features

Bucher Emhart Glass (BEG), the leading global supplier of machinery and equipment to the glass manufacturing industry, has launched a completely new version of FlexIS, its electronic control system for IS glass-forming machines.

The FlexIS system fully integrates the servo technology, making it the ideal solution for controlling modern IS equipment, from the feeder to the stacker. The first version was introduced in 2003, and over 1000 systems have been installed since then. FlexIS 3 is an all-new system that builds on BEG’s learning from FlexIS 1 and adds powerful new features.

On the hardware side, the previous JC647 control unit is replaced with the JC-365MC, a top-of-the range device based on Jetter technology, a Bucher company, used for the machine controller, section controllers, and the ware-handling controller.

On the software side, FlexIS 3 uses motion control technology to control servo motion in real time instead of only sending motion cam profiles to the drives. In line with BEG’s “Closed Loop” philosophy, information from sensors on the forming line is used to calculate timing changes, helping to stabilize the production process.

A new Manual Mode makes it simpler to interact with the machine while maintaining the same safety level as in Maintenance Stop. In Manual Mode, the blank and blow sides can be safely separated so operators can work on one without cutting power to the other, while servo take-out and servo invert mechanisms can be activated at a safe limited speed.

UC2 can host multiple user-interface clients, all connected to a central server, and supports multi-gob and multi-article application. It is ready to support BEG’s future innovations in Closed Loop Control.

UC2 is also available as an upgrade package for FlexIS 1; this configuration is known as FlexIS 2.

“Having been running FlexIS 3 under glass on multiple machines since 2016, we’re delighted that it is now ready to be launched,” says Christian von Ah, Director Controls at BEG. “It takes everything we’ve learned about the electronic control of servo IS machines over the last 15 years and distills it into a streamlined, powerful, and operator-friendly system. We’re confident that it will quickly become the first choice for all our customers.”